California signs first-in-the-nation laws putting guardrails on AI bosses

In California, an algorithm can no longer be the sole decision-maker when a worker gets fired. On September 30, 2026, Governor Gavin Newsom signed a package of bills governing how artificial intelligence is used to discipline, monitor, and lay off employees. The measures are described as the first of their kind, and they arrive as workplace automation moves from pilot projects into everyday HR operations. The package does not ban AI at work. What it does is insist that a human stay in the loop, and that workers get told when software is shaping decisions about their jobs. What the new laws actually do The headline act is the No Robo Bosses Act, formally SB 947. It prohibits employers from relying solely on automated decision systems, or ADS, when disciplining or terminating employees. Under SB 947, decisions made primarily by these systems must go through human review before they stick. SB 947 also requires employers to give workers written notices about their data rights. The ADS provisions take effect on July 1, 2027. The second bill, SB 951, updates California’s Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, known as Cal/WARN. When job losses are caused in substantial part b...